Modern Business Review

Modern Business Review is a multi-part eBook in Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. The "Hacks of Aggression" chapter can be found in Jim Miller's office in the TF29 HQ, and the "Editorial" can be found in the basement of the LIMB clinic.

Anti-capitalist radicals will cite the passing of the Corporate Sovereignty Act (2017) in the United States, the establishment of pro-corporate institutions such as the Palisade Property Bank (est. 2017), and the policy change that allows large corporations to sit on the UN Security Council (2021) as sure signs that the world is no longer run by sovereign governments, but by multinational conglomerates.

And what is wrong with that? Corporate power should be thought of a mode of political power because ultimately, corporations are the people, and represent the peoples' interest in their best interests.

Every corporation's mandate includes economic growth, expansion, and development, all desirable and necessary goals for the well-being of human society. And arguably, history has shown that they have been much more successful at this than most governments.

In the business world, there is no distinction between 'hacktivist' and corporate spy; both damage businesses, banks, and governments. However, quantifying the financial cost of computer crimes is very nearly impossible, even though no one disputes the fact that hackers are the biggest challenge facing corporations today--even in the face of the severe economic downturn following the Aug Incident.

Estimates of losses range from the fairly conservative (up to 900 billion) to the almost unimaginable (100's of trillions), but the real danger is the increase in the number of hacker groups operating in the shadows of the cyber world. Hundreds of these collectives operate on a 'nation-state' level: That is, their technical capabilities match and surpass many countries. Within the hacker underworld, they are superstars.

It remains to be seen how cyber security measures can be tightened to prevent hack attacks, whether they be denial of service, identity theft, or bank fraud.